Multimedia
With the exception of the somewhat quiet stereo speakers, the Surface Pro makes an excellent multimedia device, especially for playing videos. The Surface Pro had no problem playing my 1080p videos encoded in several different formats. I didn't have to download any extra software, but chose to download the VLC player, which is the best Windows multimedia player in existence.
Because of the quiet speakers, you wouldn't want to use this solely as a music player without a headset. However, once I popped on my Bose headphones, the sound was excellent. Best of all, this device can work perfectly without iTunes or anything that has to do with Apple.
I haven't tested the front or rear cameras on the device yet, but will update the review as soon as I do.
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Battery life
This is (almost) the achilles heel of the Surface Pro. I agree with other critics that say the battery life is disappointing, but it's not that bad considering the powerful processor involved.
With brightness turned up 80 percent, I was able to get more than 3 hours of use playing high definition videos back to back. 3 hours and 45 minutes is the most I got using the Surface Pro without recharging it. I suppose less power-hungry consumers will easily be able to get over 4 hours. Once again, this is yet another sacrifice one has to make using a well-built hybrid device.
Conclusion
The Microsoft Surface Pro is the definite answer to the underwhelming Microsoft Surface RT tablet. It is also the answer to all of those who have tried to use different tablets to do everything and have failed. It does have its faults and may not be the perfect hybrid tablet yet, but it's the first that works both satisfactory as a tablet and a laptop. Though critics may have given the device mixed reviews, people will look back in a few years and realize what a revolutionary device the Surface Pro really is.
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Twitter: @ddeino
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